Wenming Zhang, University of Alberta

Research

Hydrodynamics Water Quality Experiments Field Work Modeling Pollutant Loadings River Stormwater

Latest papers

Stochasticity and Intermittency of Microplastic Movements in Open Channel Flows.
Environmental science & technology · 2026 · senior author
Spreading and entrainment characteristics of continuously released microplastic suspensions in water.
Journal of environmental management · 2026 · senior author
WWTP effluents influence prokaryotic viral diversity and interaction with hosts: Regulating the virus-mediated nitrogen-cycling processes in river sediments.
Water research · 2026 · senior author

All 43 publications

Latest funding

System for Field Measurement of River Ice Geometry
NSERC · 2025 · Principal investigator
$142,472
Monitoring, characterization and modelling of stormwater runoff sediments for effective management practice
NSERC · 2024 · Co-investigator
$152,844
Field Measurement System for Studying River Ice Processes and Water Quality in Northern Rivers
NSERC · 2023 · Co-investigator
$110,687

All 10 grants and awards

43 publications.

01

Stochasticity and Intermittency of Microplastic Movements in Open Channel Flows.

Yu Z, Loewen M, Zhang W

Environmental science & technology2026Senior author

DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.6c03893 PMID: 41985889

02

Spreading and entrainment characteristics of continuously released microplastic suspensions in water.

Qiao X, Qian S, Zhang H, Kan K, Wang H, Zhu DZ, Zhang W

Journal of environmental management2026Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2026.129294 PMID: 41825426

03

WWTP effluents influence prokaryotic viral diversity and interaction with hosts: Regulating the virus-mediated nitrogen-cycling processes in river sediments.

Niu L, Pan Y, Li Y, Chen X, Liu X, Chen Y, Wang L, Zhang W

Water research2026Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2026.125519 PMID: 41671965

04

Characteristics of phosphorus-solubilizing bacteria and mediated phosphorus cycle in sediments of urban river-lake interfaces.

Li Y, Li X, Niu L, Hu J, Zhang W, Lin L, Zhang W

Water research2026Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2026.125392 PMID: 41564528

05

Continuous Near-Bed Movements of Microplastics in Open Channel Flows: Statistical Analysis.

Yu Z, Loewen M, Zhou Y, Guo Z, Baki AB, Zhang W

Environmental science & technology2025Senior author

DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c13351 PMID: 39817418

06

Impacts of climate change on urban stormwater runoff quantity and quality in a cold region.

Yang Y, Zhu DZ, Loewen MR, Zhang W, van Duin B, Mahmood K

The Science of the total environment2024

DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.176439 PMID: 39341248

07

Effects of mixed land use on urban stormwater quality under different rainfall event types.

Yan H, Zhu DZ, Loewen MR, Zhang W, Zhao S, van Duin B, Chen L, Mahmood K

The Science of the total environment2024

DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175124 PMID: 39089374

08

Settling velocity of microplastics in turbulent open-channel flow.

Ijaz U, Baki ABM, Wu W, Zhang W

The Science of the total environment2024Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.174179 PMID: 38925387

09

An ensemble model for accurate prediction of key water quality parameters in river based on deep learning methods.

Zheng Y, Wei J, Zhang W, Zhang Y, Zhang T, Zhou Y

Journal of environmental management2024

DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121932 PMID: 39043087

10

Particle size distribution of total suspended sediments in urban stormwater runoff: Effect of land uses, precipitation conditions, and seasonal variations.

Yan H, Zhu DZ, Loewen MR, Zhang W, Yang Y, Zhao S, van Duin B, Chen L, Mahmood K

Journal of environmental management2024

DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121467 PMID: 38908149

System for Field Measurement of River Ice Geometry

Principal investigatorNSERC2025Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Zhang, Wenming

Keywords: ice-affected rivers; ice geometry; field measurement; river ice processes; flood mapping; water infrastructure; water quality; pollutant transport; monitoring technology; modelling

$142,472

Monitoring, characterization and modelling of stormwater runoff sediments for effective management practice

Co-investigatorNSERC2024Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: He, Jianxun J

Keywords: charaterization; land surface/cover; modelling; monitoring; particle-bound pollutants; particle size; stormwater runoff; total suspended solids

$152,844

Field Measurement System for Studying River Ice Processes and Water Quality in Northern Rivers

Co-investigatorNSERC2023Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Loewen, Mark

$110,687

Monitoring and modelling water quality under ice affected conditions in rivers

Principal investigatorNSERC2021Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Zhang, Wenming W

Keywords: guideline for canadian rivers; hydrodynamics; ice-affected river water quality; impact of anthropogenic activities; impact of climate change; monitoring and modelling; novel model development; pollutant transport, mixing and fate; river ice processes; river management in cold regions

$838,400

Can biofilm facilitate COVID-19 virus survival and persistence in sewer system?_x000d_

Co-investigatorNSERC2020Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Yu, Tong

$50,000

Transport of Aerosols/Droplets Related to the Spread of COVID-19 in Indoor and Outdoor Environments_x000d_

Principal investigatorNSERC2020Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Zhang, Wenming

$50,000

Impacts of Urbanization on Stormwater Pollutant Loadings and River Water Quality

Principal investigatorNSERC2020Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Zhang, Wenming

Keywords: urbanization; stormwater; pollutant loadings; river; hydrodynamics; water quality; modeling; experiments; field work

$130,000

Possibility and Risk of COVID-19 Virus Transport via Bioaerosols in Building Plumbing and Municipal Drainage Systems_x000d_ _x000d_ _x000d_

Co-investigatorNSERC2020Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Zhu, David

$50,000

Impacts of Urbanization on Stormwater Pollutant Loadings and River Water Quality

Principal investigatorNSERC2020Discovery Launch Supplement

Principal investigators: Zhang, Wenming

$12,500

Impacts of Hydrodynamics and Environmental Parameters on a Novel In-situ Bioreactor Performance in Cold Regions_x000d_

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Zhang, Wenming

$169,600

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

Frequent collaborators

Civil and Environmental Engineering
Chemical and Materials Engineering - University of Alberta

Co-authors at University of Alberta, colored by department. Thicker lines mean more shared papers; select anyone to open their profile and their own map.

Mark Loewen

Civil and Environmental Engineering

4 shared papers, latest 2026

Xuehua Zhang

Chemical and Materials Engineering - University of Alberta

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Write to this professor

A short, specific email works best. This draft uses one of their recent papers; replace the parts in brackets with your own details before sending.

Applying for

Paper to mentionMention their NSERC grant from 2025

Subject: Prospective PhD student: Hydrodynamics Dear Professor Zhang, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "Stochasticity and Intermittency of Microplastic Movements in Open Channel Flows." (2026), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] I also saw your NSERC-funded project "System for Field Measurement of River Ice Geometry" (2025), and I would be glad to contribute to work in that direction. Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]